"After further silence the voice said, 'There has been a slight-your husband has been in an accident.' "(Agee 103) A Death in the Family is about a family who has a to go through the mourning of their loved one, Jay Follet. Jay Follet is called in the middle of the night to come see his father, who is on his death bed. It turns out to be a false alarm and Jay starts to drive home. The steering wheel in the car has a pin loose, causing the car to lose control.and Jay is thrown from the car but dies instantly. The book is about how each member of his family deals with the loss of Jay Follet. Setting: Knoxville, Tennesse in 1915. MainCharacters: Jay Follet, Mary Follet, Rufus Follet, Catherine Follet, Aunt Hannah, and Andrew. Theme: People deal with death in different ways. Another theme would be that sometimes death can be a blessing in disguise.
Why This Book is Outstanding
A Death in the Family is a powerful book because it talks about a topic that no one likes to talk about; death. It talks about how people deal with death and what comes after death. The feelings, the actions, and the characters in the book make this book outstanding.
Another interesting thing about A Death in the Family is that the author, James Agee, died before the book was published. The book was pretty much done, but there are some random pieces at the end of each part. This book also won the Pultizer Prize for being outstanding.
The way that feelings are portyrayed in this book are amazing. The style of writing allows the reader to get into the characters head and thought process for that chapter. People say exactly how they are feeling when they think it. That is why the point of view from each character allows the reader to get to know each character better. The feelings from each character or so personal and the reader will start feeling the emotion also. The feelings that are portrayed in the book are also feelings that many people can relate to and start feeling a connection with the characters.
The actions of the characters in the book also shows a lot about what death does to you. Mary Follet, Jays wife, doesn't really react at first. She finally comes to the realization that Jay isn't coming back and that she has to learn how to live without him. The way their kids deal with the situatuion is also very interesting. It is very cool how James Agee writes it from a childs point of view. Agee does a good job of putting the innocence in Rufus and Catherine. This is the first time they had really dealt with an issue of this magnitude. They don't really understand the whole concept of death at first, but then is starts to sink in.
The characters in A Death in the Family are very diverse and have their own personalities. Mary has to stay strong for her kids, but eventually has to let her emotions out. Rufus stays quiet about the ordeal, but through his actions, he shows that he misses his father dearly. Catherine is very curious about the whole subject. She is very young and doesn't know what death means. Andrew is very caring for the family and supports them in their time of need. He goes to Jay first, since Mary has to stay home with the kids. Andrew also got word fisrt and had to relay onto Mary and Hannah what happened. "'He was dead when i got there. He was instantly killed.' and he kissed her upon the mouth and they embraced.'" (Agee 133). Everyone has needed to support someone in their time of need. Aunt Hannah also helps the Mary in her time of need. Aunt Hannah stays with Rufus and Catherine while their mother mourns. Aunt Hannah also starts to explain to them what happened to their father. "' Your father children...your daddy didn't come home. He isn't going to come home ver anymore. He's-gone away to heaven and he isn't ever coming home again. Do you hear me Catherine? Are you awake? Do you understand Rufus? '" (Agee 227). Everyone has had a time where the had to explain something to someone littler than them, had to explain something that they didn't want to explain, or had to relive pain over again. All of these characters have personality traits that can be easily identified with.
Citations
Agee, James. A Death in the Family. James Agee Trust Fund, 1938.
A Death in the Family
book by: James Ageeproject by: Ashley Chelmo
Summary
"After further silence the voice said, 'There has been a slight-your husband has been in an accident.' " (Agee 103) A Death in the Family is about a family who has a to go through the mourning of their loved one, Jay Follet. Jay Follet is called in the middle of the night to come see his father, who is on his death bed. It turns out to be a false alarm and Jay starts to drive home. The steering wheel in the car has a pin loose, causing the car to lose control.and Jay is thrown from the car but dies instantly. The book is about how each member of his family deals with the loss of Jay Follet.Setting: Knoxville, Tennesse in 1915.
Main Characters: Jay Follet, Mary Follet, Rufus Follet, Catherine Follet, Aunt Hannah, and Andrew.
Theme: People deal with death in different ways. Another theme would be that sometimes death can be a blessing in disguise.
Why This Book is Outstanding
A Death in the Family is a powerful book because it talks about a topic that no one likes to talk about; death. It talks about how people deal with death and what comes after death. The feelings, the actions, and the characters in the book make this book outstanding.Another interesting thing about A Death in the Family is that the author, James Agee, died before the book was published. The book was pretty much done, but there are some random pieces at the end of each part. This book also won the Pultizer Prize for being outstanding.
The way that feelings are portyrayed in this book are amazing. The style of writing allows the reader to get into the characters head and thought process for that chapter. People say exactly how they are feeling when they think it. That is why the point of view from each character allows the reader to get to know each character better. The feelings from each character or so personal and the reader will start feeling the emotion also. The feelings that are portrayed in the book are also feelings that many people can relate to and start feeling a connection with the characters.
The actions of the characters in the book also shows a lot about what death does to you. Mary Follet, Jays wife, doesn't really react at first. She finally comes to the realization that Jay isn't coming back and that she has to learn how to live without him. The way their kids deal with the situatuion is also very interesting. It is very cool how James Agee writes it from a childs point of view. Agee does a good job of putting the innocence in Rufus and Catherine. This is the first time they had really dealt with an issue of this magnitude. They don't really understand the whole concept of death at first, but then is starts to sink in.
The characters in A Death in the Family are very diverse and have their own personalities. Mary has to stay strong for her kids, but eventually has to let her emotions out. Rufus stays quiet about the ordeal, but through his actions, he shows that he misses his father dearly. Catherine is very curious about the whole subject. She is very young and doesn't know what death means. Andrew is very caring for the family and supports them in their time of need. He goes to Jay first, since Mary has to stay home with the kids. Andrew also got word fisrt and had to relay onto Mary and Hannah what happened. "'He was dead when i got there. He was instantly killed.' and he kissed her upon the mouth and they embraced.'" (Agee 133). Everyone has needed to support someone in their time of need. Aunt Hannah also helps the Mary in her time of need. Aunt Hannah stays with Rufus and Catherine while their mother mourns. Aunt Hannah also starts to explain to them what happened to their father. "' Your father children...your daddy didn't come home. He isn't going to come home ver anymore. He's-gone away to heaven and he isn't ever coming home again. Do you hear me Catherine? Are you awake? Do you understand Rufus? '" (Agee 227). Everyone has had a time where the had to explain something to someone littler than them, had to explain something that they didn't want to explain, or had to relive pain over again. All of these characters have personality traits that can be easily identified with.
Citations
Agee, James. A Death in the Family. James Agee Trust Fund, 1938.